Hi I've just ordered my first reef aquarium

Dinkin's Aquatic Gardens
Jump to Last
Jonandjo

Jonandjo

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Nov 19, 2013
Messages
51
Reaction score
12
Location
Gateshead, UK
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hi my name is Jon and my wife has convinced me to swap from tropical fish, which I have been keeping successfully for three years now, to SW reef and fish.

The good news is I have time to have some questions answered before my tank arrives. Its 180Ltr with sump, It is a total package deal and it was within my budget.

I have so many questions bouncing around my head after reading a booklet called your first marine aquarium. These will appear in an unorganised order as and when they pop in to my head again.

  1. Topping up after evaporation: use RO water and not Salt water? is this because as the water evaporates it leaves the salt in the tank?
  2. wave makers: it advises at least 20 x the liters so that's 3600l/p/h is this total of return pump plus wave makers or individual wave maker? can anyone suggest good wave makers possibly programmable (sorry I like fancy toys). Are wave makers necessary?
  3. I would like a decent clean up crew, shrimp gobies etc. can someone give suggestions (variety and colourful if poss.)
  4. My three year old son and wife have decided on our first four fish 2x clownfish, 1 x mandarin fish and 1 x blue tang. (yes I know three out of four from finding Nemo). How many fish can be sustained comfortably within this environment, along with some corals.
  5. Deep sand or shallow sand? what's the difference?
  6. Backing for the aquarium, black, blue or reef image? is it all just personal preference or does it make a difference?
  7. If the tank is only viewable from two sides would that affect the layout of live rock?
  8. specific gravity, how often and what should I use to check it?
  9. How long can I keep RO and SW in a container? Is it better to have a container for each?
  10. Do I need to vacuum the sand during water changes? and how often do I need to water change and if so how much?
  11. live rock, how much should be in an aquarium? and what about putting some in the sump?
  12. what are easy non aggressive corals to keep, firstly from a eco system point of view, then from an aesthetic and practical point of view.
Ok I think that's enough for now, I know these and many more have been asked before, but I'm under the belief that the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.

Thanks for taking the time to read this post and thanks in advance for answering it.

cheers

Jon
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
Top Shelf Aquatics
welcome2.jpg


  1. Topping up after evaporation: use RO water and not Salt water? is this because as the water evaporates it leaves the salt in the tank
  2. wave makers: it advises at least 20 x the liters so that's 3600l/p/h is this total of return pump plus wave makers or individual wave maker? can anyone suggest good wave makers possibly programmable (sorry I like fancy toys). Are wave makers necessary?
  3. I would like a decent clean up crew, shrimp gobies etc. can someone give suggestions (variety and colourful if poss.)
  4. My three year old son and wife have decided on our first four fish 2x clownfish, 1 x mandarin fish and 1 x blue tang. (yes I know three out of four from finding Nemo). How many fish can be sustained comfortably within this environment, along with some corals.
  5. Deep sand or shallow sand? what's the difference?
  6. Backing for the aquarium, black, blue or reef image? is it all just personal preference or does it make a difference?
  7. If the tank is only viewable from two sides would that affect the layout of live rock?
  8. specific gravity, how often and what should I use to check it?
  9. How long can I keep RO and SW in a container? Is it better to have a container for each?
  10. Do I need to vacuum the sand during water changes? and how often do I need to water change and if so how much?
  11. live rock, how much should be in an aquarium? and what about putting some in the sump?
  12. what are easy non aggressive corals to keep, firstly from a eco system point of view, then from an aesthetic and practical point of view.
1) yes, use only RODI water no salt water, you use saltwater only if you do water change.
2)A wavemaker is always nice and if you going to keep corals a must, ecotech has nice fancy pumps.
3)A CUC is a CUC, it needs to be functional.
4)4 fish should work but a Mandarin and blue tang are out of the question. Mandarins need a established tank with lots of copepods, the blue tank is a NONO as they need a large tank and your 180L/47G is to small for any tang.
5) I would go for a 1.5 inch/4cm substrate, it will house enough bacteria and you critters will fell happy in that too.
6)yes it's personal, just browse around on R2R at the https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/member-tanks.52/
7)you need to have good overall flow from all corners over your rock, the view or look is personal, again look around on R2R for ideas.
8)Refractor meters are reliable to do so
refractometer02.jpg

9)Yes each in it's separate container, RODI water will stay good for a while but saltwater you don't want to save it to long as it can mess up the parameter in the water.
10)I don't vacuum my sand but other do, a waterchange is a good thing to do and it's depends on your livestock and the test you do on your water, 10% is a common thing to do to start out with as a WC never can be a bad thing.
11)get as much as liverock as your aquascape alouds as liverock will be a big part of you filter system in the tank and in the sump.
12) ugh, corals ain't easy but if you mean starter corals, there are so many. Best way is to Google as you still have a long way to go through your cycle process on your tank.
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
Diesel said:
welcome2.jpg

5) I would go for a 1.5 inch/4cm substrate, it will house enough bacteria and you critters will fell happy in that too.
Click to expand...

Considering the fact my wife will castrate me if she does not get a mandarin would a deep sand bed be better in the long run?
 
Jonandjo said:
Considering the fact my wife will castrate me if she does not get a mandarin would a deep sand bed be better in the long run?
Click to expand...

Nah I don't think your wife will do that :p
IMO a deep sand bed has no advantages over a regular now days.
We learned a lot to keep the ecosystem in balance.
Some ppl still have a deep sand bed but in their sump/refugium.
 
Welcome to R2R , you will learn everything you need from great people here! When in doubt ask. :)
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
Mandarins take an established system with pods. Even with perfect water parameters and a pod population there is still a good chance they wont survive. They are beautiful fish but please research thoroughly before u make that decision.
 
www.dinkinsaquaticgardens.com
WWC
Excellent questions @Jonandjo.And a big sigh of relief as I read the reply from @Diesel. I would just add my personal background preferences is black and blue.Or a mirror.* Also generally speaking,I siphon small areas of the substrate in my established nano.I like to keep it looking pretty and my aquarium is quite small.*Welcome to Reef2Reef!*

DSCF9187.JPG
 
Thanks for all the welcomes guys. There has been a slight hick-up with my tank I now seem to be the owner of a Red Sea reefer 250. It's up and running with one minor set back at the start, a missing o-ring which I didn't notice.
 
Dinkin's Aquatic Gardens

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 32 45.7%

  • Not yet, but I have one that I want to buy in mind!

    Votes: 9 12.9%

  • No.

    Votes: 26 37.1%

  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 3 4.3%
See comments…

New Posts

Top Shelf Aquatics
World Wide Corals
Tidal Gardens
Chewy.com
Nutramar Foods
Deltec
TCK Corals
Dinkins Aquatic Gardens
New Posts
Back
Top